


When Castiel Met Charlie

by pandemoniax3



Series: Say A Little Prayer For You [3]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angry Castiel, Angst, Dean isn't actually in the story but he is mentioned., Emotional Hurt/Comfort, First Meetings, Hurt Castiel, M/M, Mentions of Homophobic John, Mpreg, Protective Dean Winchester, Sad Castiel, Self-loathing Castiel, Tags? What tags?, maybe? - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-20
Updated: 2014-08-20
Packaged: 2018-02-14 00:37:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2171304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pandemoniax3/pseuds/pandemoniax3
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You’ve already done enough for me,” he said, not unkindly. “I didn’t want to bother you and be a… a burden.” The word felt like acid in his mouth, but he came to terms that, yes; he was a burden to everyone. He was a burden to Nora who always looked after him even though she had a child of her own. He was a burden to his family, with their looks of disproval and disgust. And he was a burden to his one and only past-friend and his family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	When Castiel Met Charlie

**Author's Note:**

> This is part 3, guys. It's taking a while, but things are starting to get rolling. (:
> 
> Hope you enjoy this; it was something that was running through my head and although it took a couple of days, I finally got it dished out.
> 
> Well, anyways, introducing Charlie. Hope you enjoy! <3

Castiel’s feet were pounding and his back was aching, but it hadn’t stopped him from trying to get a bit of last minute shopping done. With Nora’s early Christmas bonus, he decided to go to Wal-Mart and get some necessary supplies for when Hael _wanted_ to arrive. He was stressing out, to be quite honest. He was running around like a chicken with his head cut off with work and trying to get the rent paid on time for December; but most of all, he was just about ready to have Hael and call it a night.

 

Ever since that stunt that Dean tried to pull, Hael had been acting out and more than active. She was constantly kicking and squirming like she was ready to pop out already… and it was actually starting to hurt.

 

If Dean hadn’t made him so angry that day, he would’ve stayed at work. But, after Castiel had yelled at him, he couldn’t stand to be in the same area as him, so he walked out. He stormed home through the cold and he cried angry tears when he got into the safety of his apartment. Instead of mulling it over, he crashed on his bed and decided to read a book to calm himself down. He doesn’t have a TV nor does he have internet, but it’s okay; he prefers the quiet and the company of a hardcover than he does annoying reality shows that makes him want to throw his TV out the 5th story window.

 

Despite the fact that he skipped out on his shift, Nora was more than happy enough to send him home that afternoon saying that he deserved it and that he needed to rest now that the baby was almost here. Of course, Castiel wasn’t having any of that. He just couldn’t afford to skip out of work for a month when he had to pay his bills and help support his baby; which will now be another mouth to feed with both his milk and formula, which doesn’t come cheap. He also has to worry about his hospital bills, which he does not have insurance for.

 

Castiel sighed to himself as he lugged his cart around. He had his basket filled with a load of non perishables and fresh fruits and vegetables he could munch on to the side. He bought another pack of diapers and rash cream, just in case, and he took half an hour debating whether or not to get brand-name formula or just stick with the generic. Now, he was fussing over different baby monitors that he hadn’t had enough money beforehand to buy.

 

He huffed, annoyed at the fact that there were so many different types of monitors, and they were all so expensive. The money he had leftover from paying his bills for the month of December was barely enough to cover the things he had in his cart, but he didn’t want to skimp out on his baby with just a cheap voice monitor. The video monitors were really fancy, too… Chewing his lip, he just decided to get a wireless handset. It would cost a hundred dollars, but it was well worth it for the sake of his baby.

 

As if she knew what was going on in his mind, Hael gave a mighty kick.

“Oof, calm down sweetheart,” he muttered as he rubbed his belly gently. A flash of red caught the corner of his eye as a girl placed herself in front of Castiel. He looked up and saw a red-headed girl, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she smiled widely at Castiel. She didn’t look too suspicious in her Doctor Who graphic novelty t-shirt, her high water jeans and All Star Chucks.

 

“Hello? Can I help you?” Castiel arched his eyebrow at the giddy girl in front of him. She didn’t look any older than he was, but then again; after being pregnant and losing everything, he doesn’t even look as old as he actually is. _Shocker._

 

“Hi! I couldn’t help but wonder, but… how far along are you?” Castiel reeled back slightly, unused to people caring about his situation. Male carriers weren’t uncommon, of course; but _young_ pregnant _males_ were not that looked highly upon. It was more looked down upon than young pregnant females, so he had his share of sneers and whispers. It never really bothered him, but it was definitely a first for someone to ask him.

 

“Uh-uh… Um…” he stammered. The red head just giggled, not unkindly. Castiel felt his face begin to burn from embarrassment.

 

“Let me guess, people don’t usually come up and ask you?” The girl had a sad smile on her face, her eyes hardening once he nods in response. “Well, that’s okay. Most people are dicks.” She pouted, looking absently to the side as if in a deep train of thought. Before he could ask, she snapped back and grinned back at him, thrusting out her hand.

 

“My name is Charlie. Charlie Bradbury. What’s your name?” Castiel was getting flustered, looking side to side to bide his time.

 

“Castiel… Castiel Novak,” he muttered quietly under his breath. Rubbing his belly, he continued. “I’m due in about 2 and a half weeks.” Shyly, he looked down and watched his hands skim over his large belly. He was scared; like all first-time parents, he was terrified. He was afraid of the pain and the labour itself, but he knew it was all going to be worth it in the end when he has his little baby girl in his arms. He loves her with every ounce of his being, and if worse came to worse; he would choose her life over his, any day.

 

The high-pitched squealing and flailing brought him out of his reverie as he looked at the girl with amusement. As quickly as she started, she stopped; giggling to herself for probably thinking she made him uncomfortable when in fact, it was the opposite. He hadn’t had that much excitement and human interaction, except Nora and that crazy, but sweet, old lady that is his next door neighbor, since he left his home.

 

It was a nice thing that he moved outside towards the edge of town rather than in Lawrence, but whenever he had to go shopping for major things, he always found himself running away and hiding from fellow classmates that have, no doubt, been gossiping about the missing Castiel. It broke his heart, of course… He loved school, and he loved studying. Although he had no friends at school, except for Dean, he hadn’t given a care in the world because high school to him was just a trial for what was to come. He wanted to go to college, he wanted to be an astronomer and his goal in life was to reach for the stars and even maybe discover one.

 

People laughed at him, obviously, but it didn’t deter him from pushing himself harder to get straight A’s and to study hard. But of course, Castiel now knows the consequences of not using protection even if “it was only one time,” and even though it pushed him back, Castiel still believes he will be able to reach that goal one day.

 

“Sorry, it’s just… I just _love_ the idea of being able to give someone life,” Charlie sighed, slumping her shoulders in a dreamlike state. Castiel chuckled lightly, just a tiny bit jealous of her everlasting flow of energy. His energy, although it seemed to be a bit lacking, went right out the window once he started to look like a house.

 

“It’s fine, thank you. I don’t… usually meet people who see the good that comes out of my situation.” Castiel blushed, realizing that even that one remark might have been a little too heart-to-heart for a stranger. Charlie just smiled sadly at him, though. She then asked the question he didn’t want her to ask.

 

“Is the father here with you?” Her eyes looked open, not the least bit judging or critical, but merely curious; but Castiel still felt tense, unsure of what to answer to that. Luckily, his body answered for him with a loud gurgle from his stomach. He was so concerned about shopping, he had forgotten about being hungry and feeding himself. Charlie’s eyes bulged out, startled from the noise, and she was caught between looking at his stomach and his face. This time, Castiel felt himself blush for other reasons. He took this time to excuse himself and go finally to check out his items.

 

“Here, let me help you!” Charlie moved to push the cart instead, leaving Castiel behind for him to realize that she had taken his cart and was moving towards the checkout lines. He snapped himself out of it and hurriedly waddled to catch up with her before she went too far.

 

It felt like forever, but was only about 2 minutes, before he finally caught up and got in line with Charlie. He was breathing slightly heavily, but he needed that little exertion. He leaned back a little to catch his breath and held himself steady by placing his hands on the back of his hips. Charlie looked behind to see him, seeming to feel somewhat guilty, and tried for a nervous smile that more or less came out as a grimace.

 

Eventually, Castiel caught his breath and thanked Charlie for her help. She only waved her hands back and forth to deflect his thanks. He huffed in slight annoyance, but he was still more than grateful to her.

 

“It’s no problem… honestly! I was done, too anyways, so I might as well have had helped you. I’m not letting a heavily pregnant, young man do all the hard labour. No pun intended, of course,” she winked. Castiel chuckled, but waved it off as just a stranger’s affections, not wanting to get attached to her kindness. It was the small amount of kindness that he received that he looked forward to, but then realized that everything good will always eventually come to an end. He had to learn that the hard way.

 

“Thank you anyways, Charlie. I really do appreciate it.” She shrugged, and eventually the line was moving. Charlie went in front of him, buying dyes and fabrics, because _“LARPing requires a lot of time and dedication, so of course I need to focus on making my own costumes.”_

 

Castiel slowly began to regret putting _that_ many items in his cart. The bags kept filling up and soon, he had to start moving the bags over into the cart because the cashier had to fill up more bags. It was a lot more than he intended to get initially, and after looking at the price, it was a bit more than he had on his person. His heart dropped as he pulled out his wallet and envelope of cash from his side purse when he realized that he was short on money.

 

The cashier sneered at him, smacking on her gum impatiently as Castiel rummaged through his bag to see if there was any loose change or cash that fell out of the envelope into a pocket or something. He was starting to panic and felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment and shame as his eyes burned with unshed tears. He was frantically apologizing to the cashier who looked like she wasn’t having any of it before a hand was placed on Castiel’s arm and a card was being slid through the card reader. Castiel looked up to see Charlie giving him a reassuring look.

 

Getting the cart and the receipt, Castiel and Charlie walked side-to-side out of the store and into the lot. It wasn’t until he got out from the confining walls did he allow himself to breathe. A few tears fell down his cheeks as he turned and hugged Charlie tight. Normally, he would’ve been a bit creeped out at with such a familiar act like that, but alas these were not normal circumstances.

Charlie hugged him back, letting him cry a little on his shoulder until she started to shiver from the cold.

 

“Thank you so much, Charlie. You don’t understand how much I appreciate it, but I do. I just… I can’t thank you enough” he cried out as he rubbed and pressed at his eyes. He was angry at himself for being irresponsible enough to lose track of his budget costs, but Charlie had saved him. He felt indebted to her but she assured him enough that it wasn’t a problem.

 

Eventually, the two were tired from exchanging gratitudes and cold. Charlie was about to leave, pointing at a yellow, beat up, but well-loved, Volkswagen when Castiel looked down at his cart and realized he had to carry a cartful of items home… and home was a few miles away.

 

He had already gotten help from Charlie, he realized, a big butt load of help… so sighing and with a little bit of maneuvering and manhandling, Castiel finally got his bags all on his arms and fingers and he began the slow trek back home.

 

He knew his feet were going to be more than swollen when he got back home. He was approximately halfway through and he was glad he hadn’t gotten heavy items, although… he was sure that the fruits he got were beyond saving and frozen from the outside in a state of perpetual mush. His fingers felt like they were going to fall off, and his back was starting to ache even more, but he kept going. That is, until a yellow car drove up to his side.

 

Startled, Castiel dropped half of his bags before the car pulled to a stop and the redhead came rushing out to help him. Castiel slowly bent over and knelt down to get his half spilt items and vaguely ignored the other set of hands that were on the floor with him.

 

“Castiel?” Charlie’s voice was shy, yet assertive, causing him to look up at her face of concern. She looked a bit pissed, too; but Castiel thinks he’s just imagining things.

 

“Yes, Charlie?” He replied quietly as he looked back down and picked up individual tangerines that fell from the bag, unsure of how to feel about the girl helping him again. It was nice to have help, but he didn’t want to seem helpless and useless just because he was heavily, _heavily_ , pregnant.

 

A hand stopped his, and he looked up to see Charlie’s scrunched up face. Her cheeks and the tip of her nose was a bright red, which made Castiel realize exactly how cold he was. She frowned when his face scrunched up and jumped back when he sneezed, and when the lightheadedness disappeared, he looked up and saw that her frown got… frownier. He wasn’t even aware that that could even happen.

 

“Why didn’t you tell me you were walking home? I could’ve taken you.” This time, it was his turn to frown.

 

“You’ve already done enough for me,” he said, not unkindly. “I didn’t want to bother you and be a… a _burden._ ” The word felt like acid in his mouth, but he came to terms that, yes; he was a burden to everyone. He was a burden to Nora who always looked after him even though she had a child of her own. He was a burden to his family, with their looks of disproval and disgust. And he was a burden to his one and only past-friend and his family.  He could just imagine John, red in the face with anger and disgust that his first born was both gay and having a child with his best _guy_ friend. He could see Mary’s face of disappointment that Dean had lied to her about why Castiel was gone and he could see that her eyes filled with tears as she battled herself over disapproving of Dean’s actions or the fact that she was going to be a grandmother. He could see Sam’s sneer and his words of annoyance and contempt. Dean might have said he changed, but he couldn’t tell for sure.

 

Charlie scoffed, batting his hands away when he went to reach far to the right for a tangerine.

 

“You are _not_ a burden, Castiel. I would’ve been more than happy to give you a ride if you lived so far away.” Castiel pouted, unsure of what to say to that, but then he got curious.

 

“Why are you in this part of town, Charlie?” Her eyes shot up and looked around, trying to not look at his face.

 

“I… uh, I was on my way… for a comic store.” Castiel arched an eyebrow at her, seeing right through her lie. “What?” She shrugged. “A girl needs her collectibles.” Castiel huffed and shook his head. Eventually with the bags filled, she helped him get back into a standing position and lead him to the car, filling the trunk with his bags.

 

The ride back was filled with terrible rap music and the occasional direction for Charlie to turn and go. He laughed quietly, seeing how _“Charlie”_ the music and the car was, with a million stickers and decals in the inside of the car. Even though he knew Charlie for all but an hour, he was comfortable with her and he could see that if the opportunity had risen, he might have plucked up the courage and befriended her.

 

Eventually they came to a stop. Castiel refused to look at her face, knowing that she would look scared or judgingly. He attempted to push himself out of the car as she looked through the window at the looming and dark apartment complex. The outside was dirty and there were telltale signs of graffiti and hoodlum activities, and although Castiel knew he should feel unsafe, he knew that he would feel just as unsafe in the middle of Lawrence. Either way, even though he so badly wanted to move away from here, now that Hael was coming, he couldn’t afford to move.

 

Charlie scrambled out of the car and helped Castiel pull out of the car completely. She also went and helped him with the bags and followed him to his apartment on the third floor. Even though there was a rundown elevator, he preferred climbing the staircase for exercise.

 

Getting outside his apartment, he unlocked the door and stepped in, first toeing off his shoes, and then walking over to the dull and meager kitchen. Charlie hesitantly walked in, copying Castiel with the shoes, and she looked around the apartment void of decorations and luxurious comforts. Castiel, too busy with unloading everything, heard Charlie mutter something under her breath; ignoring it in favor of packing everything away that needs to be packed away and keeping things on the countertops to actually make something to eat.

 

Time passed with idle chatter and light arguing about, _“How could you_ not _have ever seen Star Wars, dude? That’s like… that’s like the biggest crime against humanity. That deserves the iron price!”_ Castiel was making chicken alfredo, with heavy cream because he was craving it, and a side salad when Charlie said something that Castiel dreaded. At that moment, he felt time stop as his blood froze in its tracts. He dropped everything as his heart dropped into his stomach and he felt like he was about to puke.

 

“Castiel… I need to tell you something,” she began in a very shaky voice. She was scared, he could tell, but from what, he didn’t know. “Dean was the one who got me to follow you.” He slowly turned from the counter to see Charlie shuffling between her feet and chewing on her lip.

 

“What did you say to me?” He managed to muster up quietly. She froze in her spot, her eyes wide in trepidation. She coughed awkwardly as she took a step back.

 

“Dean… he’s the one who wanted me to check up on you… To see how you were and where you lived, just in case!” She added quickly. Castiel’s blood was rushing to his head and he felt dizzy in rage.

 

“Get out,” he quietly let out. He gripped the countertop tight and he heard the slight hitch in her breath. “How _dare_ he try and get one of his friends to _spy on me!_ ” He turned around quickly, throwing the glass plate he picked up from the countertop and smashing it on the floor. Charlie visibly flinched, covering her ears at the loud smash that Castiel couldn’t hear over the sound of blood rushing through his ears.

 

“Get out and tell that _bastard_ that _this?_ This does _NOT_ help him in _ANY WAY!”_ He screamed over her pleads, trying to get Castiel to calm down. With every second, his anger turned into a vengeful wrath, and even though he didn’t intend for it to get out of control, he couldn’t help but feel the hate towards Charlie for being used as nothing but a _tool._

 

“Castiel! He’s only trying to help, he misses you so much. He’s been going crazy over finding you, and I just wanted to help!” She tried to reach forward to try and calm the fuming boy. Her efforts were wasted when he pushed her, throwing her into the corner of his refrigerator. She cried out in pain, but he couldn’t care less with the rage pumping through his veins.

 

“ _GET! OUT!”_ He turned and threw a glass cup across the room as she pushed herself up and ran out the door. He heard the door slam shut and he gripped his raven hair tight. He wanted to pull it out, anything for pain that hurt more than the one that was currently beating in his chest. He screamed out in pain and hurt and he cried out. His tears fell freely from his eyes and his chest was heaving with heavy breaths.

 

He slid down to the floor and curled up into a ball, ignoring the glass on the floor to let his emotions all out. He screamed out into his curled up body and hugged his head inwards into a fetal position as he sobbed. Spit was flying out of his mouth with his heavy cries, but he could care less when it felt like the first time Dean had told him that Castiel ruined his life. It felt like someone tore through his chest and ripped out his still beating heart, making sure he was still watching and felt as they threw it to the wolves.

 

His hurtful cries soon turned into painful cries when he doubled over in pain. His stomach felt tight and he felt a ripple of pain go through his lower body. He got up quickly, letting out a litany of “no, no, no, no, no’s” as he held onto his stomach. He eventually got up as another contraction hit, and he gripped the edge of the countertop tight. He grimaced and groaned in pain as he hurried to go get his emergency pack that was half filled. He was hunched over, one hand scrambling for purchase on the wall while the other hand was between death gripping the handles of the bag or holding down on his stomach.

 

“Two more weeks, baby girl. You were supposed to wait two—” groan “—more weeks.” He clawed his way through the hallway towards the door. “Christmas was supposed to be the day; but I guess mommy is getting an early Christmas present, aren’t I?” He pulled out his cheap prepaid phone and dialed the number for the taxi company that he had already memorized beforehand.

 

It felt like a lifetime, but eventually stumbling down the stairs with his bag hanging from his shoulder. He crawled into the taxi and moaned as he grabbed his stomach. The taxi driver looked torn between scared and confused, but eventually realized that they were going to the hospital.

 

“Lawrence Memorial Hospital. Hurry!”  Castiel yelled out as another contraction hit, and before long; his head rolled back and everything went black.

**Author's Note:**

> Yay! You finished. Kudos, kudos, kudos (for you!)
> 
> Hope you enjoyed that, I really liked it (even made myself tear up a bit,) but that's besides the point.
> 
> My point is, that people are idiots, and friends are always there to save the day (or make it worse.) But that's also besides the point.
> 
> This was fun, yup. But comments and kudos are in order, thank you very much. (;
> 
> I love you guys, and my heart goes ba-thump, so make me happy.  
> Peace and love, bitches! <3


End file.
